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For the past 17 years, The Filipino Express has provided the Filipino American community the best news, arts and entertainment coverage from around the United States and the Philippines.
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This website includes selected articles from this week's edition of the Filipino Express. Not all the stories published in the printed version appear on this site.
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To tell us what you think about Filipino Express Online or to comment on the stories published here, E-mail us at Filexpress@aol.com
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NEW YORK, February 17, 2005 --- A 39-year-old deaf Filipino man was allowed to stay in the country after federal immigration offficials have apparently agreed to drop deportation proceedings against him, the Filipino Express has learned.
Gerardo Dulalia, son of a World War II veteran, pleaded to remain in the United States based on humanitarian grounds. Last year, Dulalia was reported to have worked as an interpreter for blind students at Ohlone College in Fremont, California.
The Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement started deportation proceedings against Dulalia after his application for permanent residency was denied. His father, Pablo Zuñiga Dulalia, who fought side-by-side with US troops against the Japanese during the World War II, became a US citizen in 1990, but he died in 2000. His mother, a green card holder, also died.
Dulalia, who was born in the Philippines, came to Fremont in 1987 on a student visa. He went to Ohlone College for two years. But after his student visa expired, he had no other means to make his immigration status permanent as his parents had already died.
“It appears there will be a positive solution to this situation, Marcia Perez, the attorney representing Dulalia, said in a Mercury News report. ``Humanitarian factors have been considered by ICE and they’ve expressed a willingness to possibly allow him to stay.’’
Dulalia will appear in San Francisco immigration court on April 1.
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Gov’t officials condemn blast
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Bomb blast victims are rushed to a hospital following a bomb explosion in a bus in Makati City. A total of 12 people were killed and at least 93 injured in Valentine's Day bombings by suspected Muslim militants that hit Manila and two Southern Philippine cities. (MNS)
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MANILA, February 15, 2005 --- A spate of bomb explosions in Makati City, General Santos City, and Davao City, killed at least 12 people on Monday, turning the Valentine's Day celebrations into a nightmare.
The first blast happened in General Santos, leaving three people dead and 33 injured when a bomb struck a shopping mall there, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said.
Shortly before 7 p.m., another bomb exploded in Davao City. Five people were killed.
Then at 8 p.m., another bomb denotated on a public transit bus near the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) 2 Ayala Station in Makati City. The blast set two nearby buses on fire, with three persons confirmed dead and 41 wounded.
The three blasts came inside an hour as people were leaving work or going out for a romantic dinner on Valentine’s Day.
“The ground was shaking,” said a man in General Santos City. “The people were screaming and running in all directions.”
The Abu Sayyaf Muslim extremist group immediately claimed responsibility for three bombings and warned there was more to follow.
Palace, businessmen condemn blasts
Malacañang officials and businessmen have condemned the bombings in the cities of Makati, Davao and General Santos.
“We strongly condemn these attacks on innocent civilians. No person in the right mind will do such a thing to innocent bystanders,” Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said.
He added: “We share the grief of the relatives of those who were killed. The national government, local government units and concerned parties must cooperate to ensure that help will be provided to those affected by this tragedy.”
He said the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) is validating claims made by the Abu Sayyaf owning up to the bombings.
He also dismissed calls for a ceasefire in Sulu. The week-long fighting in the province allegedly prompted the Abu Sayyaf to launch a bombing campaign.
“What is important is that justice must be done in Mindanao and Sulu. There must be a lasting peace through the implementation of the law,” he said.
Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Edgardo Aglipay said probers will prioritize the investigation on the Abu Sayyaf’s culpability in the bombings without discounting the possible involvement of other rebel groups.
“We will give them priority in the investigation. We will find out if the bombs used really came from [the Abu Sayyaf],” he said.
He added: “We will also not discount the possibility that the [Moro Islamic Liberation Front] and the [Jemaah Islamiyah] are involved in this.”
He said a P500,000 reward has been offered to any information leading to the arrest in the Makati, Davao and General Santos blasts.
Guillermo Luz, Makati Business Club (MBC) executive director, also condemned the bombings as a possible attack on the country’s economy.
“This group wants to destroy the economy. This is not a coincidence. Usually, when the economy is doing well, they want to destabilize and sow terror. They just want to keep the country poor,” said Luz.
Aglipay said 1,000 soldiers will augment the region’s police force to secure public transport terminals including the Metro Rail and Light Rail Transit stations.
He added that police officers will be deployed to protect vital installations in and around the country’s capital including seaports, airports, telecommunication companies, power companies and government installations.
National Capital Region Police Office Director Avelino Razon said the police and military have set up checkpoints in all Metro Manila’s entry points.
He also appealed to public transport groups to monitor all passengers in bus and jeepney terminals.
“There’s a strong possibility the attacks could all be linked,” National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales said. “They have admitted two. We will know more later.”
A police intelligence official said investigators had not ruled out a role by Jemaah Islamiah, a regional network of militants linked to al-Qaeda and the suspected fund-raiser for previous attacks by Abu Sayyaf and other groups.
Abu Solaiman, a senior Abu Sayyaf leader, said on radio his group carried out the attacks in General Santos and Davao to punish President Glloria Macapagal-Arroyo for heavy military offensives in Jolo, its stronghold.
“This is our Valentine’s gift for her,” Solaiman said. -- with reports from MNS
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Isaias Umali was led by an investigator for arraignment in April 2003.
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NEW YORK --- Isaias Umali, the Filipino martial-arts expert, was sentenced Wednesday to 17 years in prison for fatally stabbing a nightclub bouncer who tried to enforce the city’s indoor smoking ban.
Umali, who was convicted in November of first-degree manslaughter in the April 2003 death of Dana “Shazam” Blake, had faced up to 25 years in prison.
State Supreme Court Justice Bonnie Wittner said the 6-inch serrated knife Umali used on Blake, 32, was “the deadliest knife I’ve ever seen in a courtroom. There can be no other purpose but to injure or kill somebody.”
Umali, a native of the Philippines who was living in the borough of Queens, is a student of a Filipino knife-fighting technique called kali. He told the judge his life has been “devastated” and he has tried to come to terms with the fact that he killed someone.
“I never intended to kill Mr. Blake or even to cause him serious injury,” the 33-year-old Umali said.
The dispute in a Manhattan nightclub began when Blake told a group of Umali’s friends they could not smoke. One kept puffing, and Blake grabbed him to escort him out.
During his trial, Umali testified he was afraid for the life of his friend, Jonathan Chan, because Blake had Chan’s neck in his grasp.
He acknowledged stabbing Blake in the groin, piercing his femoral artery. -- with AP reports
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Involvement in Central Park artwork makes him proud
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Glenn de Castro, and his friend, Christine Resuma, take a picture with the billowing orange fabrics of 'The Gates' in the background.
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NEW YORK, February 17, 2005 --- As he stood on a rocky hill in Central Park and looked down below at the crowd marveling at the orange fabrics of “The Gates” billowing in the wind on Saturday afternoon, Jersey City resident Glenn deCastro said it was overwhelming to realize that he was part of a phenomenal work of art.
“When I saw the Gates, I thought of myself and fellow crew members who helped put the vertical beams together and set up everything,” he said. “I just couldn’t believe I touched every Gate before the public see it. That thought alone makes it feel great.”
DeCastro, 32, of Montgomery Street, is one of the 10-member core team who works for CVJ Corp., a Manhattan-based engineering firm commissioned by “The Gates” artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude to assemble and install the artwork around Central Park.
“My name might not be mentioned, but my family and friends know that I have contributed in this extraordinary job,” he said.
Christine Resuma, a friend of deCastro’s, described how happy she was for his involvement in the Gates.
“It’s wonderful. He’s also an artist. I’m happy that he has followed his dreams; I’m happy that he has followed his heart,” Resuma, 34, of Culver Street.
For more than a year, deCastro said, the Gates materials — pipes, vinyl fabrics and pre-assembled horizontal beams — were stored in a warehouse in Maspeth, Queens, where they “cut, package, forklift, sort out and label everything.”
But during those times, deCastro said he had no idea that the project he got involved in would be the much-talk about in the New York area, or perhaps in many parts of the world.
“When I first signed up, I told myself ‘this is just another gig’,” said deCastro, who used to work for the human resources department of an investment banking firm for nine years before he changed career. On the side now, he said, he does digital design works. “I always wanted to go into the arts. I like to make things out of used materials and figure out how it works.”
But as the final day that they had to ship the Gates materials to the park drew closer, and more and more people were talking about it, deCastro added, that was the only time he realized the magnitude of the project.
“The Gates” — 7,500 of them, measuring 16-foot tall — by Christo and his wife, Jeanne-Claude, is considered to be the first grand public art event of the 21st century. It consists of more than 1 million of vinyls, and 5,300 tons of steel, arrayed along 23 miles footpaths of the park at cost (exclusively borne by the artists) of $20 million.
In 1981, the artists were denied the permit to install the Gates in the park. It took them 26 years to finally launch their artwork.
With just about a week remaining to view the Gates, meanwhile, deCastro said part of his job is “to remove some graffiti, stains, and replaced torn fabrics,” adding that he will work until the day the materials will be dismantled.
“I go around the park and make sure that the Gates look perfect. I just feel so privileged doing this. This may come once in a lifetime, but I hope I will be given another chance to do something like this again,” deCastro said.
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Jersey City, NEW JERSEY, February 17, 2005 --- The Asian American Cultural Foundation is organizing the first Miss Asia America Pageant on Saturday, June 4, 2005, 6:00 p.m., at the Victoria Theater in New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), Newark, New Jersey. Through the pageant, the foundation intends to recognize beauty, talent, poise, intellect and leadership of young Asian Americans and honor them.
The pageant will be conducted in a fashion that is designed to combine a respect for the traditional and historic foundations of the Asian traditions and culture with recognition of the perceived modern tastes and values of the American people.
The winner of the pageant will be designated “Miss Asia America 2005”, and shall be holding title until her successor is named in 2006. The winner and first two runner ups will be given cash awards and gifts. Awards will be given under special categories.
Requirements
The participants for the contest must be born to an Asian parent, resident of United States or Canada and between the ages of 18 and 25.
Deadline of submission
Applications must sent on or before April 15, 2005. There will be a preliminary pageant on Friday, June 3, 2005 at the Robert Treat Hotel, Newark opposite the NJPAC. Application fee is $100.00. Application on specific forms with supporting documents and $100 fee must be mailed on or before April 15, 2005.
Asian American Cultural Foundation, Inc. is a not for profit organization registred in the State of New Jersey. The main objectives of the foundation are to promote friendship and cooperation among the Asian American and other communities in the United States and to help promote cultural exchange between the US and other Asian countries.
The foundation encourages and assists educational insititutions in the United States to teach Asian culture and history. The foundation offers scholarship asistance and career opportunities for Asian American students.
For more information on the pageant, visit www.missasiaamerica.org.
You can also write to missasiaamerica@aol.com or ps@bollywoodhollywood.com, or call (732) 762-1029; (732) 762-4277; (973) 808-2077; (732) 829-5852.
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